Moonlight Meeting [Shen]

[Ren Fei-Long]

TAGS: Shen NOTES: none ☯

With a long yawn, Ren made her way down the narrow sidewalks, following the familiar scenes back to the inn where she was staying. The soft glow of the street lamps cast an subtle glow across the black haori that stood out against the crimson colored kimono. It was one of those few occasions which had required her to dress more appropriately to her gender, because she was not merely here to sight see. Instead, Ren was serving as a liaison for her father, attending the various diplomatic meetings and conferences in his stead, attempting to lessen the tension by making it more obvious to their enemies and the general public that the Fire Nation wasn't solely devoted to burning the world to ash as they had been in the past. Of course, this wasn't always an easy task and after the third day of talks, even Ren was beginning to feel the strain. As usual, few agreements or action ever got beyond what was written on a piece of paper. When the two diplomats could agree on something, they returned home to have the matter reviewed by the monarchs, who would agree or throw out the proposal, and in a few months, they would return to play the dance out all over again. To some, it was painfully tedious work, but having witnessed the cost of war first hand, Ren was willing to bare the burden and annoyance of handling the matter personally, if it meant preventing unnecessary war victims. The journey of a thousand miles began with small steps, or so the saying went, and it was still her hope that eventually the nations would reach common ground and an understanding between themselves to end the long standing war. Brushing aside a few long strands of hair, her brown eyes continued to scan the streets as a pair of soldiers lingered behind. Although, it seemed rather apparent that they weren't quite accustomed to seeing the princess, their commander in combat, dressed in a manner that scarcely resembled anything a solider would wear. Ren could tell this, because every time she would glance over her shoulder, the men would immediately avert their gaze, as small children did when they knew that they had done something wrong or looking at something they should not have been. Men. One would think they would be completely exhausted by now to think about such things. Returning her attention forward, Ren had barely rounded the corner when something suspicious grabbed her attention as a single light from a window of City Hall glowed through the glass pane. That was strange. Now, the princess may not have been a resident of the city, but she had been in the area long enough to learn the habits of those occupying the building and when they were working. She'd even attended a few meetings there, so with only a few hours to midnight, the building should have been completely empty. "Stay here." Ren ordered seriously, causing the two soldiers to stop at the gate as she made her way up the steps to city hall. To her surprise, however, the door was wide open and lock appeared to have obviously been tampered with. Without hesitation, Ren whipped around to the guards with a stern and somewhat concerned expression. "Go get the authorities... Now!" She hissed in order, causing the two men to nod and dart off in opposite directions to locate someone from the police force. Of course, the reason someone would want to break into City Hall was beyond Ren, but that made little difference now. Casting a glance back towards where her guards had been, the princess decided that there was little choice and soon pushed her way past the door and began to move quietly through the shadows of the building. It didn't take her long to track which room the light had been coming from and the source turned out to be one of the offices on the upper floors of the building. Slowly and silently, Ren crept her way up the darkened stairway. The silvery beams of moonlight glittered across the stone floor as she moved farther through the darkness. As she drew close enough to peer through the crack in the open door, she caught sight of the light source. However, it was the additional shadowy figure that now appeared to be rummaging through papers and old archives that immediately grabbed her attention. Steeling her resolve, Ren exhaled one final breath to steady her nerves, before pushing the door open and stepping into the room as quietly as possible. Her hand resting on the hilt of her sword, Ren stopped a couple yards short of where the thief stood. "Do not move or I promise you that you'll regret it." Ren spoke suddenly, breaking the silence, her tone echoing a deadly calm as the moonlight danced across the edge of the sword as it slid free from the black sheath. Her own shadow flickering across the opposing wall ominously, though it was easy enough to see that the princess was not joking about the matter. Sword in hand, she was ready to cut down or burn through the thief, if he offered any resistance or did not attempt to surrender now that he'd been discovered. Then again, Ren had more than a few reasons to be upset, since breaking into a government building and stealing were both criminal acts and punishable, whether one ascribe to Fire Nation law or that of Republic City.

LAIKA OF GS!

[Shen Fei-Long]

When the moon casts shadows long across my wall I'll pretend they are my friends & I've known them all along Tags: Ren words: 631 Notes: Memories will always haunt you

If there was anything that drove this new world, it was information. That was the very first thing that Shen learned when he travelled his way back into civilization all those months ago. If he wanted to change the world, then he had to know what needed changing and what tools he could use in order to force that change. Where better to look than the one place where all the nations meet and mingle freely even with the war raging on? Unfortunately, living in the lower rungs of Republic City only enabled him to glean small bits and pieces of information legitimately. Even then, most of it was pretty much worthless at this point in time. It had taken him creating the identity of Seiryu and diving into the underground in order to finally get useful information. It was the only thing he could do short of revealing himself to be the long-lost prince that supposedly died over five years ago in that ill-fated ambush, and even then he was sure that doing that would hinder –or even cripple- his plans in the long run at such an early stage. That simply wouldn’t do, and frankly he preferred this freedom over the slightly dim memories of reclusion and constant guarding that dominated his previous life anyway. He wasn’t ready to give it all up, and some part of him probably never would be. Still, normal civilian life did prove to be useful in some aspects. After all, where else would he have heard about the current diplomatic meeting between nations that was currently taking place in the affluent center? Where else would have heard that security would be focused on the guard details of the various liaisons and diplomats, leaving other areas understaffed? Not one to waste an opportunity, Shen waited until nightfall and for the public’s attention to focus on the important proceedings before donning his costume and stealthily making his way towards City Hall. It was surprisingly even easier than he thought it would to infiltrate the building, incapacitate the guards, and make his way over to the records section. Either they were understaffed or skimping on their budget by hiring subpar guards. Either way, Shen certainly wasn’t complaining about a gift horse in the mouth. That was why he was standing in front of the private records shelves, palming as many relevant books as possible while hoping against hope that no one noticed the lit candle’s soft orange light. Hey, he needed to be able to see what he was taking, or else he might end up with all duds when he looked through them later. That would make this entire venture worthless. Thud! No such luck. Shen’s hooded figure immediately tensed upon hearing the door open and footsteps enter the room. He hid the fast few books he took from the shelves into his jacket before starting to turn around, only to freeze at the sound of her voice. “Do not move or I promise you that you will regret it.” Shen’s breath caught in his throat. No. No way. No freaking way. His luck was not that bad. It couldn’t be! Despite the bad feeling in his gut and the woman’s warning, Shen turned around to take a look at her anyway. Maroon eyes widened underneath the mask when he finally caught sight of her, the moonlight dancing across her features along with the weak light of the candle flames. Even after all these years, he still knew that face like the back of his hand. It was a face that he’d never thought he would ever see again for a long time. Instinctively, he gripped his tonfa tightly and refused to answer her verbally, instead opting to stare at her with unblinking eyes. Ren….

MADE BY KIROUKO OF GANGNAM-STYLE

[Ren Fei-Long]

TAGS: Shen NOTES: none ☯

Ren remained cautious as the thief turned towards her, revealing in the steady flicker of the candle light a peculiar blue mask that was worn over his face. It came as something of a surprise, since few people who demonstrated such a fool-hearty act as to break into a government building, would be wise enough to wear a mask in the event that someone stumbled onto them. Well, it certainly made reading that culprit's reactions far more difficult. Nevertheless, it changed the situation very little. After all, there was no point in risking life and limb over information that belonged to a nation that was not her own and few would have faulted her for allowing the thief to escape with no resistance whatsoever. Unfortunately, playing the part of the coward had never been Ren's strong suit and she would have been a fool not to investigate the situation more thoroughly. The faint smirk on her features, however, seemed to give away that she understood better than most exactly what she had stumbled onto - an opportunity. Within the royal family there were few who understood the importance of public relations better than Ren. She had seen in times past just how easy it was to manipulate an event, even an accident or falsehood, and turn it into a dangerous weapon. If she could stop the thief and lead to his capture, the newspapers would have a field day and her diplomatic mission would do far more than equal another round of prattle over the details of treaties. There would also be the added bonus that the civilians of Republic City would loose faith in their own government to protect itself, let alone it's own population. With that kind of pressure, Ren would have a far easier time manipulating the United Republic of Nation and through them, the other nations, all under the guise of seeming benevolence. After all, who could refuse a hero that had protected not only the Fire Nation's interest, but those of justice as a whole? It was perfect, but first there was one small matter - the thief. Mind you, there was no real point in rushing into a battle and attempting to subdue the man with brute force. No, victory for Ren meant maintaining his presence within the building and preventing him from escaping, at least until her guards could return with the local authorities and police in tow. Thus, began a rather unique dance for Ren as the thief remained silent and almost frozen in his stance. "Raise your hands where I can see them and slowly get down on the floor. Do not make any sudden movements or you will not live to see another sunrise, on that I swear." Ren explained in a calm voice, despite the clear command and deadly warning in her words as she spoke. The princess might have been a woman, but her general demeanor was closer to that of a commanding military officer and someone who was experience to live up to those threats if the thief did not wish to comply with her orders. "Now,... why don't you tell me who you are? I'm curious to know what kind of fool would break in to steal government information. Normally, no one is that stupid, so the reason must quite an interesting one." She suggested with a cool smile, her tone seeming almost a little too relaxed. Then again, Ren had always been more than confident in her combat abilities, so in a one-on-one situation, the princess bore few concerns for her own safety. Mask or no mask, the person was nothing more than a common thief.

LAIKA OF GS!